Infection
by Hime Kurimuzon
Summary: Same old story: an extra joins Sora on his quest, but here's the twist: she can't fight, can't navigate her way out of a cardboard box to save her life, and royally-sucks at meeting new people...and the Heartless are afraid of her... possible SoraxOC
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I do not own _Kingdom Hearts_! …If I did, I wouldn't be writing a fanfiction about it! I'd be making another installment in the series. \^.^/

Crimson: I know this has been done a bajillion (it's a word, cuz it's MY word:P) times over, but I think that I've, hopefully, put in a few elements that actually HAVEN'T been done… I'm hoping, anyway… ^^; Anyone else realize that Pluto actually jumped onto the gummi ship with Donald and Goofy yet he doesn't show up anywhere? Just when Sora first wakes up? Well, he's going to be making regular appearances in this fanfic because I love dogs and my character shares my sentiments. ^.^

Full Summary: Same old story, done a thousand-and-one times over: an extra joins Sora on his quest…but here's the twist: she can't fight, can't navigate her way out of a cardboard box to save her life, and royally-sucks at meeting new people…and she's not afraid of the dark…

READ ON!

* * *

><p><strong><span>Prologue<span>**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

The darkness climbed up her legs. It was bitterly-cold, biting into her skin like hundreds of tiny needles. Her long, dark-brunette hair flowed around her body as the shadows continued to devour her. Golden-brown eyes stared blankly at the pool of darkness below her; no emotion whatsoever in their depths. Oddly, she was not scared. Even as she began to sink into the ground as tendrils of inky-black _things_ trailed up over her arms and torso, she could not register a trace of fear.

It was so strange-this emptiness inside her. It felt as if she were falling, yet her physical self stayed frozen in one spot. All of her memories, faces of those she held dear, everything seemed to be slipping from her fingers and into the void growing deep within her heart.

Her nails dug into her pale-white flesh as unwanted tears pricked the edges of her eyes. Although her emotions seemed non-existent, she could still feel the familiar pulse of desperation wash over her. She clutched at her chest even tighter as if her hand could somehow pass through the skin, muscle, and flesh to reach her heart. The desire to stop that flow-to halt that stream of memories as it steadily left her-was so strong and over-powering… She needed to stop it, somehow.

"P-please," she begged, cradling her head in her hands while sinking to her knees. The darkness was up to her waist now, but she ignored that minor detail as she desperately clung to her precious memories. "Don't take them. Please, don't take them away!" she cried to the Darkness. She had no idea if she was pleading for her memories or for her lost emotions. In the end, she settled for the one thing that encompassed both. All she wanted was the one thing that meant the most to her. That was what she wanted to keep close to her. Even if that meant giving up something as equally precious…

"Let me keep my heart!" she screamed to the swirling, black clouds above her. A moment later, the shadows encompassed her fully and whisked her away from that shattered world…


	2. What is in a Name?

_Disclaimer: I no own _Kingdom Hearts_!_

_Crimson: **sniffs**_

_Sora: What's wrong, Crimson?_

_Goofy: Gwarsh, she's just upset cuz of that disdain thing she has to say at the beginning of every chapter._

_Donald: Disclaimer!_

_Goofy: Yeah! Disclaimer! **Goofy laugh**_

_Donald: **sighs**_

_Crimson: Sora, could you say it? Please? **puppy dog eyes**_

_Sora: Uh? S-sure… **turns to readers** READ ON!_

* * *

><p><strong><span>Chapter One:<span>**

**What is in a Name?**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

"_**So much to do, so little time… Take your time. Don't be afraid. The door is still shut. Now, step forward. Can you do it?"**_

The voice echoed in her head even as she opened her eyes. For some strange reason, it sounded familiar-both the voice and the words it had spoken. Though she could not comprehend it, she _knew_ that she'd heard it once before. It was like déjà vu…

But all that was forgotten about the second something pounced on her chest, jarring her fully awake.

"Whoa!" she yelped, golden eyes flying open as she sprang into a sitting position. Before she could get a proper look at what exactly had attacked her, something sticky and wet ran across the right side of her face. Confusion made way for disgust once she realized that it was dog slobber, but her heart instantly warmed at the sight of the orange-furred pup as he finally stepped off her.

She had always had a soft spot for animals…dogs in particular…

Hadn't she?

The girl took a moment to think, wondering why she couldn't recall a single instance where she'd spent time with a pooch, but her meanderings were cut short by the dog, once again, leaping on her chest.

"Ow!" she cried, arms automatically encircling the dog to steady him so that he wouldn't fall off. Once she was sure he wouldn't move (thus causing her more surprises), she moved one hand to her aching chest, rubbing what would surely be bruises in a few hours. "That hurt," she hissed in pain, but rubbed the pup's floppy ear when he whimpered pitifully. Her golden eyes rolled in exasperation though a smile curved her pale-pink lips. "Fine! You're forgiven," she laughed. In his enthusiasm, the dog proceeded to cover her in slobber again, forcing her to her back in the little alley. Laughing, the girl forced the overly-excited animal off her with both arms, grinning from ear to ear, her previous thoughts long-forgotten. It was only then that she took a good look around.

"Where am I?" she breathed, noticing nothing but a few cardboard boxes here and there in the narrow street she'd awoken in. Stone walls of what she guessed to be buildings stood proudly on either side of her. A glance behind her informed her that she would not be able to get out that way-a bunch of wooden crates piled higher than a full-grown man blocked that opening. "This way it is then," she mumbled as she pushed herself off the ground and proceeded to the exit in front of her. The cold of the flagstone bit uncomfortably into the soles of her bare feet, but she ignored the discomfort. All her focus, currently, was on finding out where she was…and what she was going to do about it.

When she hesitated a moment to think about that, the dog that had awoken her ran headfirst into her legs. Feeling the impact, she glanced down with an apologetic smile before shaking her head and moving on.

Whatever. She wouldn't focus on those silly things. This felt like the beginning of a grand adventure! Already, she could feel the rapid pulse of her heart pounding against her ribcage at the prospect of discovery. For whatever reason, that warmth in her chest made her feel as if everything would be okay…

"Wow…" she breathed as she stepped out into the light of what appeared to be a town square. It wasn't bright enough for her to squint or cover her eyes, thankfully, but the area was lit enough that she could still see details and even read the signs that were all over the place.

"_**Traverse Town."**_

She jumped at the mysterious voice which had spoken before. She waited for it to speak again, but it never did, so she assumed that it was finished with her…for the moment.

That, or maybe she was just going crazy.

Shrugging at the thought, the young brunette moved forward, the orange dog keeping in step with her for which she was grateful. She appreciated the pup's company, glad to have _someone_ with her and not be completely alone in this strange place. The thought that the animal could sense her anxiety flitted through her mind, but, for what seemed the umpteenth time in five minutes, a voice interrupted her. She had just made it to the center of the square, looking for any sign of life when something white came careening down the steps to her left.

"PLUTO!" the creature shouted in what the girl could only call a "quacky" kind-of-voice. "Where have you been?" the speaker demanded, glaring at the dog cowering behind the girl's legs from over his bill.

Wait…bill?

The duck had white feathers; orange, webbed feet; and an orange bill (the thing on a duck's face; NOT a beak). He (at least, the girl assumed it was a he, judging by the voice) wore a blue long-sleeved shirt and a strange-looking hat, both with zippers decorating the dark-colored cloth. But-the girl was both shocked and oddly-relieved-they shared one thing in common: neither the duck nor she wore any kind of shoes on their feet.

She found it odd that this was her main concern and not the fact that a talking duck was scant feet in front of her and that he was about her size…

"Uh, who is this, Donald?" another voice-also boyish-cut through her observation of the upset duck. She glanced over at the one who had arrived without her noticing and was shocked to see a dog…

At least, he _looked _like a dog. Only this one was standing on two feet instead of four and could speak. Also, he wore clothing in a similar fashion to his duck friend, only his were green and brown in color and his style leaned more toward an aviator judging by those goggles he had wrapped around his hat. Instead of a bunch of zippers, he had several pockets decorating his black vest and light-brown pants.

The girl eyed the two buck front teeth peeking out from the talking dog's upper lip before she realized, with a start, that she had no idea what _she_ herself was wearing.

Ignoring the puzzled stares and hurried whispers coming from the two before her, the brunette glanced down to see what she was clothed in. Her soft lips turned down in a childish pout when only a simple white cotton dress met her curious gaze. She didn't like dresses. In fact, she _hated_ them! Also, the color didn't seem to please her too much. For some reason, she wished it was darker, _much _darker. And the length of it only reached to a couple of inches above her knees which was bothering her, seeing as how there were no sleeves, either. Showing this much skin-and pale skin, at that-just didn't suit her.

"Who are you?" the duck asked rudely, getting her immediate attention.

A soft humph escaped her lips at all the interruptions she had been getting today, but answered politely, nonetheless.

"I…" Wait…who was she? She racked her brain trying to remember her own name, but to no avail. "I-I don't know," she finished pitifully, hanging her head. Her face heated up until she was sure it could compete with a tomato at how red it was as they stared at her. Not that she could blame them. How could someone forget their own name? She hadn't hit her head. She _knew_ that. There was no pain, no bump anywhere on her skull, and the only soreness she felt was in her chest from where the dog-Pluto, apparently-had pounced on her.

"You don't know?" the dog-person repeated, long ears swaying when he turned to look at his friend.

'_Donald,'_ the girl reminded herself, having heard the name he'd called moments before. _'Odd, that sounds so familiar…' _Another sense of déjà vu hit her and she tried to push it back, but it remained for the longest time. Instinct had her staying absolutely still as she willed it to pass.

Donald remained silent, his face screwing up into what she guessed was his thinking face. The dog-person, on the other hand, returned his attention to the girl, face beaming.

"Well, what about _we_ give you a name?" he asked in a bright voice, grinning wide as if it was the best idea in the world. She couldn't help herself. She smiled shyly back at him. His happiness was contagious…

"A-alright," she consented, grateful that she wouldn't be nameless for the remainder of her life. "What do you want to call me?"

"Hmm," he thought for a moment, looking serious. She had a feeling that expression was quite a rare sight on his face. He looked so goofy before…

'_Goofy?'_ she thought, wondering why that struck a chord in a memory that could no longer remember. Shaking her head, she pushed the odd feeling out of her mind.

"How about 'Terah'?" he offered, watching her hopefully.

The girl thought about it, a smile forming on her lips at the name. She liked it. The word alone seemed to resonate in her heart like something alive, urging her to wear it. At her nod, the dog-person grinned madly, laughing with a "hyuck!" sound that made her giggle.

"Alright, Terah," he continued happily. "I'm Goofy, this is Donald, and that there's Pluto." He waved first to himself, then to the duck who was still deep in thought, and, lastly, to the orange-furred dog now snoozing at my feet. "Pleasure to meetcha!" he stuck out a white-gloved hand.

I took his hand in my own smaller one, smiling happily now that I had a name and at least one new friend. "Likewise."


	3. Voices

_Disclaimer: I do not own _Kingdom Hearts_._

_Crimson: **cries** Wah! No one likes my story! T.T_

_Roxas: Why am I here? I don't come in until Kingdom Hearts 2... -_-;_

_Crimson: Cuz you're my favorite character. #^.^#_

_Roxas: #o.o# Okay, so why are you crying?_

_Crimson: T.T No one's reviewing my story. Well, I got one for my prologue. Thanks, Lvl-ZeRo!_

_Roxas: **sighs** Read and review, everyone. Please?_

_Crimson: Thanks, Roxas!_

_READ ON!_

* * *

><p><strong><span>Chapter Two:<span>**

**Voices**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

"Keyblade?" Terah repeated, testing the strange word on her tongue. Her long, dark bangs fell over her right eye as she shook her head, wincing when she pulled too hard and Aerith gave her a gentle thump on the back of her skull. Yuffie had cut and styled her bangs, and, now, Aerith was busy braiding the rest of it. "Sorry, never heard of it."

Donald and Goofy's shoulders slumped at her answer, looking so dejected that Terah couldn't help the next words from spilling out. "But I'll help you look for it, okay?" Like magic, her promise seemed to revive the pair…but they both still wore hopeless expressions on their faces, even Goofy.

Terah frowned. Even though she had only known the two for half a day-hardly time enough to really consider herself an expert-she hadn't ever seen Goofy without a smile and not once had she seen such a lack of drive in Donald. She didn't like it. Not one bit.

"Alright, no sad faces," she demanded, disregarding her usual shyness in an effort to make her friends feel better. Sadness and depression did not sit well with her. She was fast learning how much she hated it when people were hurting or sad. It made _her_ hurt, as well, seeing their unhappy faces. Although she hadn't a clue how to correct that… "You've gotta smile! Be happy! Your king wouldn't want you two to lose hope and this Keybearer wouldn't want to join such a sad group…" she trailed off, not knowing exactly where she was going with this. Her cheeks were burning a nice rosy-red at the incredulous stares she was receiving from both Donald and Goofy. Her embarrassment only increased with the amused giggling of Aerith at her back.

Did she really suck that much at helping somebody?

"She's right," Aerith agreed in her soft, motherly tone, backing Terah up. "Your king-you said he was your friend, right? Well, he wouldn't want to be the cause of any unhappiness. He trusted you enough with this mission. Shouldn't that alone make you happy?" Aerith reasoned in a far better way than Terah could ever hope.

As Donald and Goofy thought over her words, Terah found herself thinking about how they had found their way into Aerith's hotel room. To be honest, nothing much had happened. Donald, Goofy, Terah, and Pluto had been making their way back to something called a "gummi ship" when they had ran into some guy named "Leon" in the 1st district. Terah immediately had felt nervous around him, even going so far as to have hidden behind Goofy. Leon, of course, hadn't cared and had simply informed the group that he had been asked by some king to watch out for them. He had taken them all to a hotel in the 2nd district where they had been told they could stay for a few days while searching for a "key"… Of course, Terah had no part in any of that, but Yuffie and Aerith had both been in the room Leon had led them all to and neither of the women would let her walk off on her own…

Still, that didn't explain how she had become their life-sized dress-up doll… She should have just walked out then and there…

Terah released a soft sigh. Glancing at the full-length mirror on the wall in front of her from her position on the bed, she found herself taking back what she had said about walking out. To be perfectly honest, she actually kind of liked the slight-goth/emo look the two older girls had made her over with. Of course, Aerith had wished to dress her in a lighter style, but both Yuffie and she had agreed that Terah possessed that "dark air" about her…so the pink-fashioned girl had settled for this, instead.

Her simple white dress had been replaced by a sleeveless black tunic which stopped just short of her knees. She wore a pair of black shorts beneath that which couldn't be seen thanks to the length of the shirt. Grey socks covered most of her calves, ending at the base of her knees; while on her actual feet, she wore a pair of grey and white sneakers-perfect for running, jumping, and all that sort of activity (in other words, NOT dress shoes). Around her waist was a grey sash, cinching off her already-trim waistline and accentuating a bust that was barely there. The collar of the tunic hugged tightly to the base of her neck, not revealing any non-existent cleavage like the previous dress had. Instead of sleeves covering her arms, Terah had long, fingerless gloves that were black in color with grey trim and came all the way up to just below her shoulders. As an added flair of fashion mixed with practicality-courtesy of Yuffie-Terah wore a dark-purple vest with silver zippers sealing the several pockets which were stuffed with ninja goodies.

Her dark hair had been styled, as well. Yuffie had taken it upon herself to cut Terah's bangs at an angle so that her left eye could be seen clearly but her right eye was completely hidden beneath the dark locks. Aerith would have argued against this, but Terah had realized that she couldn't see well out of that eye anyway, so the matter was dropped. Aerith, meanwhile, had decided to twist her waist-long hair into a single braid that would drape over her right shoulder once she finished.

Needless to say, Terah had _not_ expected a makeover when she had first met these two…

"_**The closer you get to light, the greater your shadow becomes."**_

"Huh?" Terah perked up, pulse racing at that familiar voice. With a simple glance around, she knew that none of the others had spoken. Was this going to become a regular occurrence? By the Goddess, she hoped not. The last thing she needed was her new friends to think her insane.

"Something wrong, Terah?" Goofy asked, having noticed her movements.

Terah turned to him and, consequently, a brooding Donald before shaking her head "no". "No…" she denied pitifully, opting to change the subject. "Could I come with you guys to search for this Keyblade-Wielder? And to look for your king? I don't really have anywhere else to go…" her gaze drifted off to the side, afraid to look at them as she waited for their answer. It was true: she had nowhere to go. Without her memories, she was nothing. Less than nothing. Yet, at the same time, she now had a clean slate. She could be whoever she wanted to be. If she had been a shy, weak coward before; now was her chance to be a strong, brave warrior. Although Aerith may tell her it didn't work that way, Terah didn't care. She would _make _it work…

"Of course no-!" Donald started but was abruptly cut off by Goofy.

"Well, it'll be dangerous, so…" Goofy trailed off, not knowing how to put this. He didn't want the girl to get hurt, but he didn't want her to be all alone, either…

"Well, I think it would be a good idea," Aerith put in her two-cents, even though Terah could pick up the underlying doubt in her tone. "Terah may not have her memories, but surely there will be _someone_ who knows her out there and can help her to remember," she continued, settling a comforting hand on the brunette's shoulder and squeezing lightly in a form of reassurance. "But, if you'd like, you are welcome to stay with us here in Traverse Town," she kindly offered, smiling down at the fourteen-year-old.

Terah smiled gratefully in return, but shook her head at the invitation. "Thank you, but I feel like I _have_ to go with them…" she explained…or tried to. "I can't describe this feeling," she went on as she turned to the King's two closest friends. "I just know that I need to follow it. Please, let me come with you? I can at least help with, well, _something_," she begged, but she really didn't have much to offer. She couldn't fight. At least, she didn't _think_ she could. Her sense of direction _sucked_. They all discovered that an hour ago when she tried to find her way back from the bathroom and ended up on the other side of town somehow… Still, there had to be _something_ she could do.

At the sight of Donald shaking his head, Terah felt her heart drop.

"_**But don't be afraid. You hold the mightiest weapon of all."**_

Terah froze, golden eyes going out of focus as if she were being pulled away to another place even though her body remained in the Traverse Town hotel with Goofy, Donald, and Aerith. Vaguely, she could make out what appeared to be a boy struggling within a pool of darkness. Familiarity hit her, but she did not know what name to call as she automatically opened her mouth. Closing it, she realized that she seemed to be floating above the scene; and as quickly as she discovered this, the boy did, too. His blue eyes snapped open and stared at her, a combination of fear and confusion swirling in their depths. Her own golden gaze must have shown the same or, at the very least, similar emotions.

"_**So don't forget: you are the one who will open the door."**_

That voice again! This time it echoed directly into her ear and she cringed at the loudness, clamping her hands over her ears and squinting her eyes shut against the sudden pain that split her skull. There was something else she registered, too, when she heard the voice:

Fear. Stark fear.

Fear of what, she had no idea, but within seconds she was gone from that place and back in the hotel room like nothing had ever happened.

"Sorry, Terah, but you can't come," Donald told her with a tone of finality in his voice.

Terah jumped at his words, having not shaken off the apparition yet. Her trembling must have been mistook for sadness because, the next moment, Aerith was rubbing her back in a comforting manner. Not having the strength nor the willpower to argue, Terah simply nodded at Donald and Goofy, accepting their decision…for now.


	4. For the Sake of the Mission

_Disclaimer: I do not own _Kingdom Hearts_. I DO own Terah, though, so NO STEALING HER!_

_Crimson: **sighs** I'm alone today…and still no reviews. Depressing… But I did get another review from Lvl-ZeR0. \^.^/ THANK YOU!_

READ ON!

* * *

><p><strong><span>Chapter Three:<span>**

**For the Sake of the Mission**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

The next day found Terah in quite the pickle.

She peeked around a corner of a building, golden eyes glancing this way and that to make sure the coast was clear. Before she even had the chance to step out of the concealing shadows of the 2nd District, a force barreled into her from behind and propelled her forward. Flailing her arms to keep herself from falling to the hard, unyielding cobblestone, Terah felt her heart leap into her throat at being out in the open. Thankfully, no one was around, but she turned to glare at the mischievous dog that had taken to following her everywhere.

"Pluto!" she hissed with a reprimanding glare, but the overgrown pup only seemed to snicker before racing past her towards the center of the square. She rolled her eyes and sighed, but let it slide this time around.

She and Pluto had snuck out earlier that morning after getting a much-needed rest at the hotel. Terah had met a friend of Donald's and Goofy's. His name was Jiminy Cricket. He was an actual cricket! But, unlike other insects, he was very wise and could talk. According to Goofy, he was even chronicling the journey of the Keyblade-Wielder. That, Terah thought, was quite a spectacular thing.

But, getting back to the point…

Jiminy had told her about something called the "Ansem Reports". Apparently, Donald and Goofy remained blissfully unaware of those papers as of yet (Aerith saying that she'd tell them later), but Jiminy was an avid writer and chronicler so he knew all about the missing research papers of this mysterious scientist. He saw no harm in telling Terah about it, since she was so eager to learn all she could from those around her. The little cricket had let slip that there was rumor that one such missing paper had made its way here, to Traverse Town. They had been scattered over all the worlds after Ansem's world had been consumed by the Heartless. The scientist had been studying the Heartless and- Aerith seemed to believe-he had a way to defeat them for good. Needless to say, these pages were of great importance to the Keyblade Master; that of which he could not go without…

Terah was going to find one and prove that she could be useful to the mission.

Of course, that meant dodging all of the Heartless in the higher districts while searching for this one missing page…

"Terah," Jiminy Cricket chirped from his position on her right shoulder, face creased in concern. "I don't think this is such a good idea," he repeated for the umpteenth time, trying to get the young teen to turn around and head back to the 1st District-the only safe area left in Traverse Town.

The brunette frowned, not liking the idea of facing down the dangerous Heartless either and getting her heart stolen, but she had no choice if she wanted to prove her usefulness. She bit her lip, glancing at the newest friend she'd made as he sat on her shoulder then to the happy-go-lucky dog as he pranced off into an alleyway. Concern ate away at her insides at the thought of either of them getting hurt for her stubbornness. She _had_ told Jiminy what she would be doing and where she was going when she caught sight of him hopping after her in pursuit the moment she snuck out the hotel window, but he had been adamant about tagging along to "keep her out of trouble". She failed to see what he could in case something did happen, but refrained from speaking up about it so as to not hurt his feelings. Pluto, on the other hand, had been stuck to her side like glue since he had first woken her up the day she got to Traverse Town.

"Maybe," she relented just a little, but only a little. She would _not_ back down from this. She was _not_ going to give up! Her jaw set as determination flared in her eyes. "But I've got to try!"

Not waiting for an answer (or an argument), Terah sprinted forward to follow the vanishing black tail of the King's dear pet.


	5. Those Without Hearts Those Without Hope

_Disclaimer: I do not own _Kingdom Hearts_! But I DO own Terah!_

_Crimson: Sooooo… How am I doing so far? Is Terah an okay character? Am I portraying stuff right? Do y'all like the story? Please TELL ME! T.T I NEED REVIEWS! WAH!_

_Jiminy Cricket: Oh, dear… Read on, please? And review?_

_Sora: Also, Crimson would like to thank her reviewers thus far… **reads from notecards** ahem, starseach225, Dracula X, and Lvl-ZeR0. ^-^_

* * *

><p><strong><span>Chapter Four:<span>**

**Those Without Hearts & Those Without Hope**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

Spirits! Those things were _scary_!

Terah was breathing hard, limbs shaking from the fierce running her body had just undergone. Not only was she physically exhausted, she was emotionally wiped out, as well.

As soon as she had turned the corner of the alley Pluto had disappeared into, Terah had been both shocked and scared to death to see a group of Heartless surrounding the cowering animal. Instead of freezing, running away, or even rushing forward to fight-each the expected response to such an occurrence-Terah had charged right into the shadowy mass, grabbed Pluto's collar as she passed and dragged the dog deeper down the alley to where she had seen the faint outline of a door. Within seconds, both dog and girl had disappeared within the thankfully-unlocked house.

Which was where they were now.

"Good job, Terah," Jiminy patted the side of her neck-all that he could reach from his position on her shoulder. His voice shook with raw fear, but he managed to keep his cool. Terah figured that he had been frightened by those heart-stealing creatures out there. Pluto, too. What was odd, though, was that Terah had not…

Sure, she felt fear, but it was not fear of the Heartless, but the terror of someone close to her being hurt or worse. It could have been a regular human gang or a bunch of rabid dogs and she would have felt that same gut-wrenching emotion. The Heartless, themselves, really hadn't frightened her, although their appearance was most bizarre. All she could recall, however, was that they had ink-black skin and glowing yellow eyes. In other words, simple Shadow Heartless. Only, they had been much larger than what she had been expecting. From the way Leon had spoken of them being the weakest of the bunch, she had expected them to be shorter than her knee, at least, and weak-looking. But from what she had seen, they had been far from it.

Shadows were as large as Leon, had lean-yet-muscled bodies, and made hissing sounds like water hitting fire…

"Where are we?" Jiminy asked aloud, probably wanting to draw all of our attention away from what had almost transpired. He had unintentionally-broken Terah's concentration on the unexpected looks of the Shadow Heartless.

Terah looked around at their new surroundings, taking in the cozy furniture and brightly-colored walls. The warm atmosphere was a vast change from what the dark and cold alleyway had been. At the sight of it, Terah and the others managed to calm themselves quickly. No doubt, a record for anyone after such a close encounter with the Heartless…

"I don't know… Hey, Pluto!" Terah called out for the king's pet as the dog suddenly sprang into action and disappeared behind a door which had been left cracked open. A frustrated sigh slipped past her lips as she took up pursuit, her heart pounding with a sudden rush of adrenaline. "You'd think he'd learn not to go rushing off like that after what happened a minute ago!" she mumbled under her breath, seeing Jiminy nod at her words from the corner of her eye.

Bursting through the door, Terah soon found herself skidding to a halt when she suddenly came face-to-muzzle with a pair of very-surprised Dalmatians. "Eep!" she yelped as she fell smack on her rear, having lost her balance in the attempt to stop from running over the poor dogs. Grimacing at the pain now shooting up her tailbone, Terah muttered off a string of apologies to the animals…although she figured they couldn't understand her anyway.

"Are you okay, Terah?" Jiminy asked with a worried tone. "That was quite a fall."

"Fine. I'm fine," she assured, giving the cricket an embarrassed smile as a blush blossomed in her cheeks. She rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment before deciding it was safer to simply remain on the floor rather than risk another hard-not to mention _painful_-fall. Instead, she turned to Pluto who was standing by the two sorrowful Dalmatians, black tail wagging madly. As Terah gave him a weak glare (glaring not being her strong suit), Jiminy hopped off her shoulder and towards the pair of Dalmatians. After some whining and some quiet words from the cricket which the brunette girl could not make out, the tiny journalist turned towards Terah with a sympathetic face. Immediately, Terah sat up straight, sensing some bad news headed her way.

"What's the matter, Jiminy?" she questioned, glancing up at the two spotted animals whose expressions could only be summed up in one word: heartbreaking. She was worried about them despite herself. Animals seemed to evoke strong emotions from her heart more than actual human beings.

"Well…" he began, wondering how to word the next part. With a sigh, he threw caution to the wind and just "pulled the band-aid off", so to speak. "These two lost all their pups when their world was destroyed. Ninety-nine of their children are spread out over all the worlds! And they have no way of finding any of them…" Jiminy ended in a sorrowful voice, obviously upset by the horrible situation.

Terah felt her heart twist uncomfortably in her chest and she, too, frowned in despair. What if they were hurt…or worse? And _ninety-nine_? That was quite a handful of pups! How would they manage to find them all? Much less, would the Keyblade-wielder even care to? Obviously, he would be the one to accomplish such a goal, since only he would be able to travel among the worlds…unless Terah achieved her goal and managed to get hold of one of these mysterious and valuable Ansem reports…

"_**Keyblade… Keyblade…"**_

That voice again! Terah grit her teeth, not happy at hearing the mysterious words echoing in her head for no reason whatsoever. Only this time, she noticed something different. On every other occasion she had heard the voice, it was emotionless and speaking in nothing but a whisper. Almost as if it was reading a bunch of facts on a computer or simply rules for a game. But, this time, thought it still spoke in a whisper, there was a tone of excitement lacing its words. Or word, as the case may be. The way it said "Keyblade" brought to mind a cat eyeing a mouse as it poked its head out its hole…

"Terah? Terah?" Jiminy's words broke through the tremors of fear running through her thoughts, his voice betraying his own alarm at the brunette's sudden lack of attention and stiff body. He landed on her raised knee, closely watching as her eyes-looking so far away-finally cleared of whatever trance she had suddenly slipped into. Breathing a sigh of relief, he gently reprimanded her for scaring him like that. "Geez, Terah! Don't scare me like that!" he didn't raise his voice much, but the worry in his tone was evident and it made the girl flinch with guilt.

"Sorry," she apologized in a small voice, sounding much like the child that she, truly, was. Something licked her cheek, and she instantly brightened up when she turned to see the female Dalmatian giving her a dog grin. It was still tinged with sadness, but a glimmer of motherly concern lit the dog's beautiful brown eyes. Terah scratched her behind an ear in silent thanks, wondering how someone who had just lost all of her children still show so much concern to a complete stranger…


	6. With a Blackened Heart

_Disclaimer: I do not own _Kingdom Hearts_! But I DO own Terah! Mwahahahaha!_

_Terah: …Help me?_

_Crimson: Traitor… Anyway, Thanks to everyone who reviewed, favorited, and/or alerted this story. ^.^ I am SOOOOOOOO happy!_

_Terah: And high on sugar, caffeine, work, and the facts that you just bought the two Kingdom Hearts ds games…_

_Crimson: Not even you can bring me down. \^o^/_

_Terah: **sighs** Crimson's plans include making these chapters longer…MUCH longer. But that may mean the time period between updates will lengthen since she has to work practically every day. Haha._

_Crimson: I so hate you right now…*_

_Terah: Anyway…she also plans to have a bunch of sequels to this story, although it's a little early for this already… She plans WAY too far ahead._

_Crimson: HEY!_

_Terah: Long author's note short: It goes: Infection (KH1) Corruption (358/2) Transmission (Birth By Sleep) Degradation (Chain of Memories) and Salvation (KH2)…Haven't figured out where or if there will be stories for the games: Re-coded and/or 3D yet. ^.^_

_READ ON!_

* * *

><p><strong><span>Chapter Five:<span>**

**With a Blackened Heart**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

"Look, a star's goin' out!" Goofy cried, pointing up to the sky where, indeed, a little pinpoint of light flickered before completely disappearing.

"Come on. Let's hurry," Donald commanded, anxiety clearly showing in his voice. He, Goofy, and Pluto moved on, continuing to search for not only the key, but Terah, now, as well…although Donald would never admit it. He had a mission to fulfill first.

"Where's that key…" Donald wondered, proving the point, although half his mind was curious to where his new friend, Terah had gone to as well and if she was okay.

"Hey, ya know, maybe we ought to go find Leon," Goofy advised, thinking along the same lines as his duck friend. Leon and the others had been searching for Terah since noon when she hadn't returned from wherever it was that she had run off to. His concern was growing as time went on. He hadn't known how hard she would take it-not being able to accompany them on their mission. Perhaps it would have been better if they had allowed her to tag along? To avoid this whole mess at the very least…

The sound of claws clacking against the cobblestone drew Goofy's attention and he turned to see Pluto sprinting off in the opposite direction.

"Uh, Donald. Ya know, I betcha that…" he started but was abruptly and rudely cut off by his feathery companion.

"Aw, what do you know, you big palooka?" the white duck cut in, snorting. He'd been in a bad mood all day and didn't need Goofy's "plans". They always ended up in either embarrassment or pain, anyway. He could still recall the "ski" incident from a year ago…

"What do I know? Hmm… Come on, Pluto," Goofy called to the dog, before shrugging his shoulders and hurrying to catch up to Donald's furious pace.

* * *

><p><strong>.::Dalmatians' house::.<strong>

Terah awoke with a start, breathing rapidly as though she had just run a marathon. One hand flew to clutch at her chest where it felt as if a great weight had suddenly settled itself within her ribcage. Tears, unbidden, came to her eyes and she sniffed them away, wondering why in the heavens she was crying when she couldn't even remember what she had been dreaming about.

"Darkness…" she whispered, recalling that little tidbit. "It was so cold and terrifying… But…that can't be right," she mumbled to herself, brow furrowed in puzzlement. She _liked_ the darkness, relished the cold. She'd had a hard enough time explaining to Aerith how much it had hurt to stay in her brightly-lit room at the hotel. The pink-loving woman obviously had an infatuation with light and a too-warm atmosphere. Not that Terah had anything against that… It was just that-for Terah-the light seemed to restrict her, somehow, and heat of any kind made her lethargic.

That was probably part of the reason why she had suddenly passed out not long after meeting the Dalmatians-Perdy and Pongo.

Looking around the room she had awoken in, Terah felt a vague sense of familiarity. She could faintly recall both Pongo and Pluto helping her drag her exhausted body to the bed, Perdy pulling the covers over her just like any mother would (not that Terah had any experience with that). Jiminy's words had been hurried and full of concern for Terah's health as he communicated with the three canines, but she couldn't recall exactly what he'd said because she had promptly fell into a deep sleep as soon as the warm covers had dropped over her.

What an odd morning it had been thus far. Terah sighed, upset with her apparent weakness. She had barely been awake and moving for an hour and she had already fainted once! And only after one Heartless encounter! _If _you could call high-tailing it out of there like hell was on her heels an "encounter"…

Shaking her head to rid herself of any more of her failures from creeping into her consciousness, Terah took a quick glance to her bedside. The clock there was the first thing to catch her attention, and she could read the numbers on its face perfectly well despite the dim lighting of the guest room.

12:09.

She hoped that meant it was afternoon and still the same day. Unfortunately, she had no way of knowing for certain.

The second-and, consequently, the most-important-thing she noticed was a small piece of paper no bigger than the palm of her hand sitting on the bedside table, a glass ball holding it down. Terah picked up the glass paperweight first, bringing it to her face so that she could study it more closely. It was a rich ebony-black, hints of violet shimmering every now and then as she turned it in the lamplight sifting in through the curtains. She had thought the shape was that of a simple ball, at first, but, now that she had a better look, Terah saw that it was actually a heart. A black heart that felt strangely-warm in her hand…

Somehow, she doubted that this piece belonged to anyone in this house…

Keeping hold of the strange glass heart, Terah leaned over the note that Jiminy had left for her. It had been written in a hurry-she could tell-from how short and to the point the words were, yet still in an elegant hand. Fitting for the "royal scribe" as she had taken to calling him. He had seemed somewhat-pleased with the title, but would rather substitute "chronicler" for "scribe"…

"_Terah,_

_I apologize for leaving you alone but you are safe with Perdy and Pongo. They agreed that you can stay with them for as long as you need. Pluto and I have decided to go back to get the others, hopefully Leon so that he can carry you back to the hotel. So just stay put and we'll be back soon. I apologize but it seems that your mission will have to wait. We'll be back soon._

_Your friend, Jiminy Cricket_

Seeing as how she was still in the Dalmatians' house and there was no Leon or Jiminy in sight, Terah would have to guess that either she hadn't been asleep as long as she thought or Jiminy and Pluto had just left moments ago. That, of course, had her worried. How would those two fare against all those Heartless crawling all over the place?

Terah had to shake her head free of such disturbing thoughts. Pluto could move fast whenever he was actually paying attention, and Jiminy would make him stay fully-aware until they made it to the safety of the hotel. The brunette teen was sure they'd be perfectly fine. Besides, it was a short distance to the hotel from here. Within moments, they would be with Leon, Donald, and the others…

Donald…and Goofy… They had refused to let her join their mission. Instantly, her heart dropped as she swung her legs over the side of the plush mattress. But if she could get her hands on something as vital as one of Ansem's reports…

Her hands clenched, fingers burrowing into the mussed dark-purple covers of the bed. Determination flared in her eyes, making the gold of her irises burn like an amber flame.

"I have to find that paper!"

With that said, Terah proceeded to sneak out the window. She felt bad about leaving without saying a word of thanks to the two canines occupying the house, but she had little choice if Jiminy had told the pair to keep her there. And she was sure that the little cricket had done just that. Besides, the less time she wasted, the better chance she had of finding the report before Leon and the others found her…

The hard tile of the roof met the soles of her shoes which, luckily, had been left on during her "sleep". What remained of the morning dew (which had yet to evaporate fully since the sun could barely shine through the heavy clouds hovering over this town) made it very difficult for Terah to get a decent foothold on the slanted surface. Her eyes gazed worriedly at the concrete street two stories below as she slowly inched along the black roof. Her fingers slipped over the damp tiles, clutching at every crack or edge they possibly could, the knuckles turning stark-white. What seemed like hours, took only a handful of minutes. The muscles in both her hands were crimped and screaming with pain at the way she had held onto dear life to each and every edge. She had finally made it to a platform where there was a staircase concealed in shadows, slipping only once as she shimmied down the drainpipe. She didn't even have the time for a proper scream or yelp before her feet hit the ground. Shocked at the sudden stop of her fall, Terah's legs gave out and she crumpled none-too-gracefully to the floor. A relieved sigh escaped her lips when she realized she was unhurt, safe, and no longer up very high. Although, she had to admit, she _did_ like the adrenaline which still coursed through her veins…

Feeding off what remained of that high, Terah got right back up and hurried down the steps. She kept to the shadows, sensing more than actually knowing that it would be the safest way to travel-be unseen by both the Heartless and Leon's group; be less of a target. Her legs may have been short and her muscles weak, but Terah soon discovered that her speed would outmatch even Pluto's fastest dash. A self-satisfied grin made its way to her lips.

Finally! Something that she _could_ do!

A sense of euphoria filled her which spurred her to go even _faster_. She barely noticed a couple roaming Heartless as she passed by them, intent on her goal. At first, all she had cared about was putting some distance and time between her and Leon; but, now, something was drawing her to the clock tower-the tallest building in Traverse Town. She couldn't describe it. It was just a feeling she had. A nagging sensation buzzing in the back of her skull which she could not ignore no matter how much she tried.

She had just made it to the an alleyway where a ladder had been attached to the side of a building when something unexpected happened.

An explosion of darkness tossed her back into the nearby wall, leaving her dazed and confused. Terah grit her teeth against the pain exploding in her skull, mumbling a few choice words she'd heard Donald say the day before after Goofy had accidentally stepped on his foot. Looking up to see what had caused her physical distress, the brunette felt her heart leap into her throat. Although she did not fear the Heartless like everyone else did, Terah could not deny the fact that she was a little unnerved by their strange appearance and knack for appearing out of thin air when least expected…

A Heartless stood before her. A kind she had not experienced before. This one was slightly larger than the Shadows, making it all that much more impressive. But, instead of antennae swiveling about on the top of its head, this one had what seemed to be a silver helmet encasing its head. Within the opening of the helmet, she could see that this type shared the glowing yellow eyes which the Shadows had along with the ink-black skin. Its body was scrawnier though more defined, somehow, and it had a set of wicked-looking claws tipped with red which, Terah hoped, was simply for show. But what really caught the brunette's attention was the symbol on its chest.

It looked like a black heart with a tail on its end and a red barbed cross overlapping the heart part.

It reminded Terah of the glass heart she had found at the Dalmatians' house. Thinking back on it, she didn't remember ever putting it back…

The Soldier Heartless-Terah decided to call it, hearing the name ringing in her skull-didn't jump at her, didn't attack her, and didn't even make a sound. In fact, it just stood there, staring at her and weaving slightly like a blade of grass in the wind or an alcoholic whose had one too many. Then, as suddenly as it had appeared, it vanished in a cloud of black. Terah simply sat at the base of the wall, golden eyes glued to the spot the new species of Heartless had been.

"Okay…" Terah spoke slowly in an awed voice as she got to her feet for the hundredth time that day. "That was weird." Deciding to think about the strange experience later-maybe even inform Donald and the others about it-Terah reached up and gripped one of the rungs of the ladder. The cold metal felt wonderful against her skin and Terah relished in it as she climbed, still trying to shake off the unsettling sensation growing in the pit of her stomach. Thankfully, no more surprises awaited her at the top of the tower. She made her way over to the clock face, noticing that an hour had passed since she had woken up at noon.

Something in the innermost pocket of her vest grew unnaturally-warm as she slipped behind the enormous clock to the gears and working within. Over the sound of heavy machinery turning and groaning like a living beast, Terah could just make out what sounded like a drumbeat. The heat intensified until it felt like the skin of her right breast was going to burn from the force. Hissing at the pain, she dug around in the many pockets Yuffie had bestowed upon her, sifting through the endless amount of potions, elixirs and camping equipment before finding what it was she was looking for.

Shock had her eyes widening when she pulled out the black, glass heart from before. How had _that_ gotten there?

She almost dropped the thing when it started to glow crimson, burning like fire in the palm of her hand until she could feel the tears of pain forming in the corners of her eyes. If an invisible force hadn't been keeping it glued firmly to her outstretched hand, she would have let it fall. Instead, she was forced to bear the agony as the red light engulfed the area. The blaze grew so much that she had to squint her eyes just to be able to make out any of the gears surrounding her. Finally, a faint gold outline began to form a short distance before her. It took a few seconds, but Terah recognized it to be some kind of keyhole. Only _this_ hole warped into the shape of a heart…shining with white light at its center. The shape of the heart mimicked the size and outline of the black glass orb she held in her hand. Without a second thought, Terah tossed the thing into the center of the white light. Half of her was desperate to block such brightness; the other half was simply curious to see what would lie behind such an intricate lock.

Her plan succeeded and the white light soon became engulfed by shadows. The area behind the clock's face finally receded into the darkness, and Terah dropped to her knees, feeling drained. It wasn't until several deep, calming breaths later that she caught sight of something on the wooden floorboards that hadn't been there before.

Terah reached down, picking up what appeared to be a rather-thick and worn journal. It was barely twice the size of her hand, easily hidden within her vest if she needed to. The brown leather cover was soft to the touch and flaking away with age and frequent use, but the pages within were only slightly-yellowed, proving that they were of good quality. Paperclips were stuck here and there along with several post-its and tufts of random samples that scientists collect, making the journal much thicker than it normally would have been. As she flicked through the pages, she noticed that every single one of them had either writing on it and/or rather-detailed drawings. There was a lot of information here…

'_But,' _she thought, brow furrowed in confusion, _'I thought that there was only _one_ missing page of Ansem's report here…'_

Surely, this couldn't be _all_ of Ansem's reports? Both Aerith and Jiminy had told her that Ansem's journal had been torn apart and scattered over all the worlds. This made no sense that there was a full book here about the Heartless…among other things.

It was true, as she flipped through the little journal, Terah recognized a couple of the drawings. One was a symbol she'd seen on those creatures with the helmets; and another was a perfect depiction of what she had come to know as "Shadow Heartless". But, then, there were many beings she didn't recognize… What was a 'Nobody'?


	7. The Boy with the Key

_Disclaimer: I do not own _Kingdom Hearts_, but I DO own Terah!_

_Crimson: I would like to take the time to thank my following reviewers! Sora, if you please. ^.^_

_Sora: **sighs** Alright, but ONLY if I'm in this chapter… **grumbles**_

_Crimson: …_

_Sora: I AM in this chapter, right?_

_Crimson: …Planning on it… ^.^;_

_Sora: That's what you said the LAST time!_

_Crimson: Oops?_

_Sora: -_-; Crimson would like to thank: Lvl-ZeR0, starseach225, Dracula X, BlewItUp, PaopuPoweredPickle, and MCRDanime._

_Crimson: Thanks, Keyboy!_

_Sora: "Keyboy"?_

_Crimson: **ignores** READ ON!_

* * *

><p><strong><span>Chapter Six:<span>**

**The Boy with the Key**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

Terah had been sitting inside the clock tower for hours-though it only felt like minutes to her-reading the worn journal and trying to make sense of it all. There was so much to look through-even notes scribbled up the margins so as to get every little detail in until the entire page was a jumbled mess of letters and diagrams-that she doubted she would get even halfway through the thick book anytime soon…

Not that she would be able to understand a word of it, anyway…

An exasperated sigh slipped past the brunette's lips as she dragged a hand through her bangs, placing the open book on her knee. So far, all she had pieced together was something about the Heartless invading the worlds through things called "Keyholes". Then there had been an entry about a Keyblade Wielder, of course-the one with the power to lock or unlock these keyholes. But, then, a note scribbled on the side of that same page had a disturbing new insight…

The Keyblade would be useless if even one Heartless uses that path…

And, by the looks of the 2nd and 3rd districts of Traverse Town, about a hundred-if not several thousand-had already squeezed through this world's Keyhole.

That did not bode well for the Wielder of the Keyblade.

Terah flipped through the pages, trying-one last time-to find anything that would be able to _hint_ to a solution for this problem.

Nothing. Of course. If what this book said was true, then the "Key" that Goofy and Donald were searching for would be useless in their mission to find the King.

The teen pulled her knees to her chest, settling her forehead against them as she took a deep, calming breath. Should she tell them? Or should she keep it a secret? After all, this random notebook she had discovered could be filled with lies-something planted by the Heartless to dishearten those who wielded the Keyblade. Then again, she didn't think that this was so. These handwritten words felt real to her; true and honest. Almost as if written by her own hand, she trusted these notes more than anything else. There had to be a remedy to these-these…_infections_ the Heartless caused! There just had to be!

Terah sighed again, pushing herself off the floor and into a standing position. Pocketing the research journal, the brunette girl decided she'd had enough moping around. It would do no one any good if she sulked about the seemingly-hopeless situation. Plus, she would never find the answer in this rundown clock tower. That, she was sure of. To get to the bottom of this, she would need to get out there and search for the solution. She decided to start with the Wielder of the Keyblade, or-if not him (or her)-the Key itself. Perhaps the cure to the infections would lie with them. It was worth a shot, at least.

A smile made its way to her pale lips, lifting her momentary depression. If she could find the Key before Donald and Goofy, then perhaps they would reconsider her on accompanying their mission across the worlds in search of their king. She didn't know why she was so desperate to go with them. All she knew was that she couldn't stand the thought of remaining in one place for too long. That, and those two were her friends-the first ones she'd made; the first people she'd met. Just the thought of them getting hurt or worse made her stomach turn unnaturally-so. Even though she couldn't do much, she could still be an extra ally to distract the Heartless or help heal someone with potions out on the battlefield. Heck! Even jumping between a blade and her friends was something she could do! She would gladly take a hit if given half the chance, if that meant those dearest to her would remain safe…

Terah shook her head as she moved down the ladder of the clock tower, already hearing Jiminy's high-pitched voice in her head. He would be _so_ upset with her for even _thinking_ of something as horrendous as sacrificing herself for them. In his heart, she knew he'd be flattered and impressed, but, mostly, shocked and angry. She could understand that, of course. If the tables were turned, Terah wouldn't want anyone dying for her. The idea of someone willing to give their life for hers was heart-warming yet terrifying all at once. She wanted her friends to live; not die unnecessarily.

Which was why they didn't want her to accompany them on their journey.

In order to convince them she would be perfectly-alright-not a hindrance at all-she would need to prove how she could be both useful and keep herself protected. Fighting was out. She _knew_ she couldn't handle any kind of a weapon and, judging by her frequent trip-ups and falls, martial arts was out of the question. Eventually, with some training, she may be able to defend herself up to a point, but, at present, she would be considered a "hopeless case" in that area.

"I could hide, I guess. I'm pretty good at running away and vanishing," she wondered aloud to herself as she touched the cobblestone of the alleyway from earlier. It was true, she had yet to see a sign of Leon, Yuffie, or any of the others; and she had been gone for _hours_. Even the Heartless had yet to pose a serious threat to her, seeing as how she had run right past a few of them just hours ago and not one had time enough to attack her.

Her golden eyes landed on the very spot that Soldier Heartless had stood and stared at her. Curiosity getting the best of her, Terah wondered over to that darkened corner. Her thoughts turned to what could possibly have been going through that creature's mind back then. "It didn't attack me," she mused, chewing on the inner part of her cheek as she replayed the event in her mind. The way it had appeared had been sudden and had taken her completely by surprise. It reminded her of how Pluto would act whenever he wanted to see something that was going on without him-always the curious pup.

Speaking of the orange-furred dog…

"Uh-oh," Terah winced when she heard those familiar claws clicking on the surface of the street, coming closer with each step. She could tell the canine had already caught her scent by how close together the sounds had grown-Pluto was racing straight towards the shadowy alleyway. Sucking in her breath with a nervous gleam in her eyes, Terah stepped out of the alcove, ready for the scolding she was, no doubt, going to receive from Jiminy for disappearing like she had and disobeying his orders.

She didn't wait long.

"Terah! Thank goodness!" the tiny journalist chirped, voice full of relief as Pluto bound up the stairs.

Before she had a chance to say anything in her defense, the brunette was knocked over by an over-excited Pluto. Laughter echoed off the gloomy buildings surrounding the trio as Terah was licked nearly to death by the worried dog. His paws pressed against her chest, keeping her down despite her protests which were interrupted with giggles from the sticky tongue tickling her cheeks and chin. It wasn't until Jiminy hopped down to stand on Pluto's nose and demand the dog to stop, that Terah had the chance to get her breath back. Unfortunately, the cricket didn't allow her time enough to replenish her lungs before he started on his rant.

"Terah! Where have you been?" he accused, glaring up at the crouching girl. He gaze softened only a bit when he saw her flinch at his angry words. "We've been looking for you all over town! I told you to stay at Pongo and Purdy's house! Do you _know_ how worried we've all been?" he demanded, not letting up on his scolding. She needed to understand that this was not something she could do freely! Not without consequences! He had begun to think the poor girl had her heart taken by the Heartless. It had been _hours_ since he'd left her at the Dalmatians' to fetch Leon. By the time they'd made it back, Perdy had been beside herself with worry after finding her bed empty not a minute before. They'd searched the whole house without a sign of her anywhere. Then, they'd all gone back to the hotel to gather up a search party… Needless to say, even with combing over the whole town, all they'd managed to find were a bunch of Heartless to either fight of run from.

Of course, Leon had discovered the Keyblade Wielder which they'd been searching for previously, but no Terah.

"I-I'm s-s-sorry," the girl apologized, dropping her head to stare at the ground at her knees. She played with the hem of her black tunic, trying to keep the tears filling her eyes from falling. In her heart, she knew that she deserved this tongue-lashing, but hearing one of her friends saying this to her in such an angry voice and knowing that she was the cause for his being upset…it just _hurt_ so much! It made her heart ache…

"Terah…" Jiminy Cricket sighed, dropping the heat from his voice. He had no intentions of making her cry. He simply wished for her to see that what she did had been dangerous and foolish. He, certainly, did not want a repeat of the terrifying event. Aerith, too, did not wish for such; and had made it a point to inform him of it so that he could pass it on to Terah.

Aerith… Jiminy flinched, knowing that the woman would give her own lecture to the poor Terah later on. He decided to leave the rest to her.

"It's alright. At least you're safe," he consoled as he hopped up onto her shoulder, giving the side of her neck a comforting pat. At the icy feeling of her skin as it came into contact with his hand, he gasped, shocked by how devoid of warmth his friend was. Upon closer inspection, he could see the slight tremors shaking her frail form-shivers against the cold. The tears that were in her eyes streamed down her cheeks in salty rivulets, glistening drops flecking her eyelashes. But the thing that caught his attention the most was the way her eyes looked.

They were glazed over. It was like she wasn't seeing anything in front of her as she stared out over the 2nd District, pupils dilated to the point they nearly enveloped the amber of the irises.

"Terah? Terah!" Jiminy tried getting her attention, hopping up until he was yelling directly into her ear. The only response he got was when the brunette raised her arm and pointed at a spot on the other side of the district. Following the line of her arm, the cricket noticed a group of shadow-black creatures surrounding someone. He started, knowing that the person needed help but having no idea how to get it to them. He was too small to be of any real use against the Heartless, and Pluto was already cowering behind Terah, while Terah herself…was getting up and racing towards the swarm?

Wait…what?

"Terah! What are you doing?" Jiminy cried over the rush of wind buffeting them as the girl ran, hanging on for dear life to his friend's collar. How could she move so fast? Already, they were halfway to the pile of moving darkness, getting ever-closer to danger. "We can't help them! You can't fight, remember?"

Terah frowned but held her tongue at his lack of faith in her fighting abilities…no matter how right he was.

"I know, but I've gotta do _something_!" she snapped back at him, nerves already on edge about the whole "keyhole-infection" deal she had to work out. It didn't help matters that she, now, seemed to have a draw to this swarm of Heartless. It felt like some kind of tug or pull at her heart-almost like a magnet-dragging her towards the center of the dark mass.

"I've got to do something," she mumbled under her breath, closing her eyes tightly before leaping into the fray. With her speed, she was able to dodge claws, teeth, and headbutts as she steadily made her way to where the person was trying to fend off the great number of Heartless. Ever the observant one, Terah slowly began to notice how a few of the Heartless froze upon seeing her. One Shadow, in particular, halted in its tracks when it nearly struck out at her with a set of razor-sharp claws. Terah locked eyes with it for a brief moment, feeling a tightness in her chest before that persistent tug forced her to move on. Jiminy, fortunately, had hid himself in one of her empty vest pockets, keeping safe throughout the ordeal. Terah managed to reach the person trapped within but got sideswiped by something burning and hard.

"Ah!" she cried out in pain, tumbling backwards to the cobblestone street. The Heartless behind her moved out of the way as she fell, as if avoiding touching her at all. Ignoring their loud hissing, Terah glared at the person who had hit her, rubbing her throbbing shoulder. No doubt, a nasty bruise would form in a matter of minutes, but that did little to upset her. She didn't care about a blemish or two. What she _did_ care for was the horrible burning sensation searing her bare skin.

"Ngh!" she grunted in pain, trying to rub away the heat. It ebbed away on its own, but slowly-very slowly.

"Oh! I'm sorry!" a boy's voice drew her attention away from the minor injury. Ignoring the discomfort in her shoulder, Terah looked up into a pair of sky-blue eyes.

A boy stood before her. She was so focused on him that she didn't even notice that the Heartless that had previously-surrounded them had disappeared.

His hair swept up in soft, brown spikes, defying gravity. His blues eyes glittered with childish cheer yet had an air of silent determination, all the same, as he stared in amazement at the girl on the ground before him. Obviously, he had not expected someone to be there, in the middle of that enormous group of Heartless. He was thin yet had strength enough to carry what looked to be a large key with a chain dangling off the handle. Most of what he wore was red but he had on a black vest with short white sleeves and blue trim. A black belt hung loosely around his waist with a silver chain hanging off at the left hip. Large yellow shoes encased his feet and a pair of hardy gloves-with similar coloring to his vest-hugged his hands.

Terah blinked as one such gloved hand appeared in her face, palm up. Glancing over the outstretched fingers, she tilted her head questionably at the expectant look on his grinning face. His smile dropped a bit, but brightened immediately when she timidly took his hand. She bit back the instinctive shriek when she suddenly found herself on her feet, not anticipating his incredible strength. His hands settled on her shoulders to steady her as the boy gave her a sheepish look, obviously embarrassed at startling her.

"My name's Sora!" the spike-haired brunette declared proudly, pointing to himself with his thumb. Terah refrained from chuckling at his overly-cheerful behavior, giving him a shy smile and wave as she introduced herself.

"I'm Terah," she said in her soft voice. "And this is Pluto," she went on, petting the orange-colored dog who had come over to sit loyally at her side, "and Jiminy Cricket," she then indicated the little journalist sitting upon her right shoulder who chirped a 'Hello' at the boy, glad to not have been forgotten in all the excitement. "Are you the Keyblade-Wielder?" she asked directly, not bothering to beat around the bush. She leaned to one side in an effort to get a better look at the overlarge key the boy had balanced on his shoulder. It was big-nearly as large as he was tall. The part of the "key" that would go into the lock-the teeth-brought to mind a crown. The handle, on the other hand, was simple and gold in color. Or was that the "guard"? Terah couldn't recall the weapons lesson she'd had with Yuffie the other night. That girl talked too much… But since Terah didn't talk much herself, it was really a perfect match…

"Huh? Oh, _this_?" Sora lifted the Keyblade, blue eyes roaming over the impressive length. Terah gave an absent nod, but the boy didn't see it. "Yeah, I guess I am. But I don't really know what that means," he admitted in a nervous voice, rubbing the back of his neck as he gave her an awkward smile.

Terah's own lips quirked up in a small grin of her own. His cheerful and upbeat attitude was contagious.

"Have you met with Do-?" the brunette girl began but was cut off by several warping sounds. Looking around, the pair noticed that they were no longer alone-several Heartless had arrived in the courtyard. It was like a sea of darkness-large and seemingly-infinite. Before she realized what was happening, Sora had grabbed her hand and began to run down a random alley. Terah stumbled after him, noticing how fast he was. Getting over her initial shock, she managed to speed up until she ran beside him, matching him step-for-step. A few Shadows and Soldiers would appear now and then in front of them as they turned a corner, refusing to slow their breakneck speed, but they were taken care of quickly by Sora as he swiped the Keyblade at them, forcing them back. Worry crept into her heart when Terah realized something of extreme importance.

Somebody was missing from their party…

"Where's Pluto?" Terah asked in a breathless voice as she moved quickly towards the door at the end of the alley. She wanted to stop, but Sora's hand was tightly gripping hers and he would not let go.

Jiminy, thankfully, put her fears at ease. "Don't worry about him. He ran off in the direction of the Dalmatians' house. He'll be safe there." The tiny writer clung tightly to the edge of her right breast pocket, having decided that was a safer way to travel while fleeing from Heartless.

"Hurry!" Sora's panicked cry unknowingly broke into the two's conversation. "We have to make it through that door!" The boy pointed at the impressive door before them with his Keyblade.

Terah nodded at his words, biting her lower lip as they charged right at the thing. They were going to run right into it and break their necks! But they couldn't slow down, not with the Heartless at their backs. Adrenaline spurred her to go faster as one Shadow made a grab at Jiminy from his place in her vest. Luckily, the cricket had ducked down just in time and Terah had managed to twirl just out of the creature's reach when it appeared suddenly on the wall. Instinctively, Sora pulled the girl further towards the center of the path, keeping away from the shadows piling against the sides of the alley. After knocking a couple more Soldiers out of the way, Sora-slightly-breathless-shot out his arm straight at the door they were seconds away from smashing into. The blade of the key glowed with a white light for a brief moment-making Terah flinch in pain and slit her eyes-before shooting out a beam right at the lock. The doors burst open as soon as the trio reached them, slamming shut right behind them and keeping the Heartless trapped in the 2nd District.

Sora and Terah were granted a breather, and they took full advantage of it. While Sora simply gripped his knees with his hands to remain standing, breathing heavily; Terah plopped right onto the ground, relishing in the cool stone sinking into her skin. She didn't want to be outdone by Sora as far as a show of strength went, but, at this point in time, she really didn't care. She was _exhausted_! Her lungs dragged in much-needed air as she rested on her back, eyes looking up at the stars. It wasn't until a light chuckling made its way to her ears that she grimaced and sat up, a blush on her cheeks. Her amber eyes blazed when she caught Sora laughing at her. He was trying to hide his mirth behind a hand but was failing miserably at it. Terah rolled her eyes at him, breaking out into a full grin herself. He broke down laughing; she did too, unable to hold it in.

They'd just managed to cheat death! For some reason, the two teens found that funny! She was just so relieved that no one had been killed…this time.

"You're a pretty fast runner," Sora praised, helping her to her feet for the second time that day.

"Thanks," Terah blushed pink in embarrassment, not knowing what else to say. "You're a good fighter," she rubbed the back of her head, stopping to smile when she saw the glowing expression on the boy's face at her comment.

'_Boys…'_

"So…" Sora trailed off, looking around at the darkened city. Terah glanced around, too, noticing how late it had gotten. Just how long had she been up in that clock? "What were you doing with a bunch of Heartless around?" the Keyblade-Wielder finished, turning his penetrating blue gaze back to her.

Terah jumped, not expecting such a question. Well, of course, who wouldn't ask that? She didn't exactly look like the warrior-type-she couldn't handle the Heartless on her own. So…what should she tell him? What excuse should she use here?

Ah, heck with it…

"I'm trying to find something," Terah admitted with a sigh, golden eyes sliding off to look to the side, not focusing on any one thing in particular. Thankfully, Jiminy stayed quiet from his place on her shoulder, allowing her to take the reins on this one.

"Find something?" Sora repeated in a questioning voice. His eyes lost some of their sparkle as he watched her sadly.

Terah felt that weight from before tighten around her heart at the sight.

"Did you lose your friends, too? Did you lose your home?" he asked in a cheerless voice, no longer smiling. For some reason, Terah thought the frown was odd on his face-out of place. She didn't like it, but she wasn't the one to replace it with a smile. She knew that much. He had someone else.

But how did she know that?

When Terah remained silent, Jiminy prodded the girl's neck gently in an effort to draw her attention. Startled, Terah sucked in a breath, answering quickly. "Well, I _think_ so… I don't really know. I'm just looking for something," she confessed, cheeks red from embarrassment at both her spacing out and the fact that she really wasn't sure _what_ she was looking for exactly.

"I see…" Sora trailed off, still having that serious look firmly in place. After thinking for a few seconds, his fingers rubbing his chin in contemplation, his expression brightened. His sky-blue eyes danced when he looked over at the forlorn girl, an idea bursting into his head. "Hey! Why don't you come with me?" he offered, indicating himself with a wave of his hands, a large grin spread over his face. "I'm looking for my friends, Riku and Kairi. We can look for whatever it is you are searching for, too! Who knows? We might find it. Two heads are better than one, right?" he laughed, crossing his arms behind his head in a laidback style. He probably thought it was "cool"…but it just made him look like a carefree kid.

A giggle slipped past her lips as Terah thought that, the image not too far off from his personality. She nodded her head, the load on her heart lightening somewhat at the offer. At least, this way, she'd have a chance to find whatever it was she was searching for. It wasn't until she met him, that Terah even realized she was looking for something… A lost piece of herself. That was why she had craved adventure so much. There was something out there, waiting for her. She was sure of it. Finding it; now, _that_, would be the challenge.

"Sure," she accepted with a shy smile, golden eyes burning with anticipation.

"Great!" Sora exclaimed, happy now that he had someone to help him in his search for his friends. He turned back to the open 3rd District, glancing behind him at the girl who would now be joining him on his important quest. "Let's get going!" With that said, he ran forward. Terah followed, catching up to him quickly.

Neither teenager knew just how much weight those few words carried…or how much the answer would change everyone's fates…

"_**Why don't you come with me?"**_

"_**Sure."**_


	8. In the Heat of Battle

_Disclaimer: I do not own _Kingdom Hearts_, but I DO own my OC, Terah!_

_Crimson: Let's play a game! ^.^_

_Kingdom Hearts cast: **groans**_

_Crimson: For the readers…Jeesh. You'd think I just asked you all to jump off a bridge…_

_Riku: No. We just don't want to play 7 minutes in heaven…_

_Crimson: -_-; Uh, yeah right. No way would I do that here. Anyway… Anyone want to guess how I came up with Terah's name? Here's a hint: look at the letters._

_Goofy: Ooh! I know this one! It's-!_

_Crimson: **slaps hand over Goofy's mouth** I said for the readers!_

_Jiminy: Read on and review, please!_

_Sora: And here's the list of the awesome reviewers to thank:_

_Lvl-ZeR0 __**(6)**_

_starsearch225 __**(1)**_

_Dracula X __**(4)**_

_BlewItUp __**(1)**_

_PaopuPoweredPickle __**(1)**_

_MCRDanime __**(1)**_

_dreamingleaf7 __**(1)**_

_READ ON!_

* * *

><p><strong><span>Chapter Seven:<span>**

**In the Heat of Battle**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

Terah heard the familiar shouts first, but had no time to move out of the way. Before she even had the chance to look up, the girl was squashed under the combined weight of Goofy and Donald who had come flying off the balcony above. It took her all of two seconds to realize that she was on top of something warm and squishy.

She had landed on Sora.

Terah opened her mouth to apologize-realizing her face was buried in the side of his neck-but was cut off by her two friends simultaneous yells.

"The key!"

All eyes went to the Keyblade which lay a couple feet in front of them, still clutched tightly within Sora's grip. Sora's other arm, however, was currently pinned beneath Terah's torso, able only to twitch the fingers thanks to the duck and dog-person piled haphazardly on top of her. It was a highly-awkward position, especially with the girl's warm breath tickling the skin of his left cheek. He watched the pink blossoming across Terah's face from the corner of his eye, feeling his own skin heat up at how close they were.

"Donald, Goofy…" Terah groaned, panting for breath as their weight threatened to cave in her lungs. "Get off!" Normally, she would have added "please", but there was no time to waste with such pleasantries. Several Soldier Heartless had sprung from the shadows, surrounding the group fast. Donald and Goofy sprang to their feet, Terah tried to get up herself, but tripped over nothing and started to fall back down. Luckily, someone caught her, saving her from the harsh contact with the ground and a nasty scrape. Blue eyes stared into her gold when she looked up to thank the one who had kept her from falling.

"You okay?" Sora asked with a tilt of his head. At her nod to signify that she was, indeed, unscathed, the Keyblade-Wielder surveyed the shadow army gathering on the square of the 3rd District. A contemplative expression settled over his face for a moment as he thought over the situation, Keyblade at the ready in a taut hand. The blue of his eyes lit up when he spotted the soft glow of the fountain on the other side of the crowded court. "Maybe you should wait over there, Terah," he pointed to the large water feature.

The girl followed the line of his arm, golden eyes narrowing with doubt. She really didn't want to leave the boys to fight all on their own, although she knew they were plenty capable. But hiding seemed to be the only option she had…

"Don't worry," Sora reassured as if reading her thoughts. "I'll get rid of these guys easy!" he smirked, voice full of unbridled confidence.

"Come on, Terah," Jiminy urged from her vest pocket, having returned there from leaping off seconds before they were squashed by Donald and Goofy. "The only thing we can do right now is to stay out of their way," he placated, managing to keep calm despite the perilous circumstances. Terah nodded to Sora, Donald, and Goofy (the latter two giving her silent hard stares that she knew meant she'd get a huge lecture later for having vanished). Then, she ran as fast as her thin legs would take her, speeding through the waves of Soldiers to reach the fountain. The Heartless simply allowed her to pass, only two or three turning her way to watch her pass. They were too focused on the Keyblade to pay her much attention. In a matter of seconds, she was safely crouched behind the glowing platform known as the Traverse Town fountain. The water below sparkled with a yellow-blue light, making her pale skin seem even whiter and bringing out the reddish hues in her waist-long hair.

She watched as Sora returned his attention back to the Heartless at hand, dropping down low in a defensive crouch as he readied himself to fight. Determination now mixed with the confident look in his eyes seconds before he raced forward, taking out the first Soldier within seconds. Goofy and Donald moved swiftly behind him as they, too, dived into the fight. Both kept close to their "key", protecting each other's backs as they fought. Soon enough, the numbers of the Heartless were cut in half, Donald wiping out the other half with a combination of thunder magic and aid from the Keyblade-Wielder.

All seemed safe and Terah was just about to step out of her hiding place to join her friends when something had her freezing in her tracks. Nothing was in sight, and she didn't hear anything, but Terah was no fool. She had learned to listen to her gut and wasn't about to disobey it now. Ignoring Jiminy's questions as to why she didn't join the others, Terah ducked back behind the fountain. And just in time, too.

Something gigantic fell from the sky above Traverse Town, dropping down to the ground with a metallic clang. Most of it was purple and it looked like some kind of machine or huge armor, but Terah could still see the symbol she had come to relate to the Heartless on its torso. It's torso, legs, arms, and head were all separate, connected by nothing. Narrowing her eyes, the brunette noticed this wasn't true. Strong wind twisters bonded the pieces together, mixed with flecks of darkness.

'_**Guard Armor.'**_

'_Oh, not you again,' _Terah seethed in her head, not happy to hear that strange voice ringing in her skull. She could swear she heard a displeased huff at her silent rebuke.

Terah ducked behind the fountain as a piece of armor came flying at her head. Her hands came up to shield the pocket of her vest, protecting Jiminy from any additional debris. Amber eyes widened as pools of darkness appeared at the edges of the place she was hiding in. Out of the inky-blackness, crooked antennae followed by glowing yellow eyes formed. Long, lean-muscled bodies-as black as night-grew out of the shadows soon after until they towered above her crouched form.

Shadow Heartless.

"Terah, we need to get out of here!" Jiminy cried in her ear, eyes wide with terror. Terah, on the other hand, ignored the shrill cry, golden eyes trapped within the glowing gaze of one of the three Heartless-the one that stood before the rest. Quite possibly, he-she-_it_ was the leader of the trio. She didn't move a muscle, feeling nothing-not even fear-as it rested a clawed hand on her forearm, gripping it tight. It proceeded backwards, dragging her back to the other two who kept turning towards the fight out in the courtyard where the boys had managed to knock the Guard Armor down to its torso and two legs. Their dark bodies quivered every time the giant Heartless started their way only to be forced back by Sora's Keyblade and Donald's magic.

"Terah! Wake up, Terah!" the cricket yelled in her ear, bringing her out of her deep trance. Realizing what was happening, the girl pulled back, bracing her legs against the Heartless's movements. Her arm was still trapped within its icy grip, and she tried to slip her ensnared limb from the creature's grasp but to no avail. Jiminy was beginning to panic and tried to call out to the others for help but his tiny voice couldn't reach that far. Terah, on the other hand, had a special quality about her…

She could get _loud_ if she needed to.

"SORA!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, instantly drawing everyone's attention.

The boy in question whirled around in the midst of his battle. His blue eyes spotted Terah instantly, widening in fear and amazement at the sight of three Shadow Heartless trying to drag her away. She struggled to put up a fight but was much too weak, her human nails and teeth doing nothing against the Heartless' tough skin.

"TERAH!" Sora cried out, sprinting towards the endangered girl. A leg suddenly came down right in front of him, effectively halting his progress. He glared up at the Heartless he had been fighting, crouching low to the ground as he readied for the attack. He kept glancing worriedly at Terah now and then, seeing her losing the battle as pools of Darkness formed beneath the trio, threatening to engulf his new friend. The rapid beating of his heart pounded ruthlessly against his eardrums as struck the Guard Armor repeatedly, growing more and more desperate. Goofy-also seeing Terah in danger-rushed forward without second thought, smashing his shield against the creature's leg. His attack was the last straw, it seemed-the leg shattered. Donald didn't let up on his attacks, either. The mage raised his wand high into the air and, with a battle cry, brought thunder from the sky to disorient the huge Heartless.

Sora-his path cleared-nodded his thanks at the pair before racing off in the direction of the fountain. His speed-built up over the years of racing Riku-soon brought him to Terah and her new "friends". With several frenzied swipes and thrusts of his blade, the boy managed to destroy the Heartless who had nearly kidnapped his friend.

Terah-shaking from the experience-gulped back the fear that had formed in her throat, trying to act like she hadn't been scared to death. The Heartless hadn't been out to hurt her; they hadn't so much as scratched her. The hold on her arm had been firm but gentle, taking care not to dig the claws into her soft flesh. Even the Darkness swarming beneath her hadn't bothered her. It had felt cool and welcoming-like a beautiful spring night. It wasn't until she had glanced back to see if Sora and the others had heard her shouts that true terror had erupted within her heart. His blue eyes had caught her amber ones and she had practically _seen _the fear radiating off the Keyblade-Wielder, spurning her own.

She had almost lost him. She had almost disappeared to who-knows-where; and never see him again. Him and all the other friends she had made during her short stay in Traverse Town. _That _was what had her panicking.

"You okay, Terah?" Sora asked, worried. Goofy and Donald ran up to them, concerned expressions on their faces too. Somehow, they had managed to finish off the Guard Armor on their own.

Terah nodded, pushing herself to her feet. She stood shakily, but she stood. And that's what counts.

"Yeah, I'm okay," she sighed, not happy that she'd been seen in such a weak state. "Um, Donald? Goofy? Sorry about earlier," she rubbed the back of her head nervously as she apologized.

"Aw, that's alright!" Goofy waved off the apology, not caring about what happened in the past. It was the present he was concerned about. "As long as you're okay."

Donald, however, wasn't as forgiving and turned around with a huff. It was apparent that he was still upset with her.

Terah sighed, figuring that it wouldn't be so easy to get his forgiveness. Instead, she opted for another tactic. "This is the person you were looking for, right?" she asked the pair, motioning to Sora who looked shocked at her question.

"So, you were looking for me?" Sora asked, looking from Donald to Goofy to, finally, Terah.

"Uh huh," Donald and Goofy affirmed together. Terah simply smiled, standing off to the side of the group. Sora grinned back at her, seeing that she was a shy person by nature.

"They, too, have been seeking the wielder of the Keyblade," Leon spoke up from behind the group, having just entered the 3rd District. Terah hid herself from his glare, taking refuge behind Sora's back. The poor boy just looked confused.

"Hey, why don't you come with us?" Goofy interrupted the tense moment, drawing attention away from Terah's earlier vanishing act. He felt bad for the poor girl. He could tell she was feeling guilty by the whole ordeal; what she had put them all through. He could see that it had been accident on her part. Her intentions had been pure if not slightly selfish, but the knight could understand that. He, for one, wouldn't want to be left alone in a strange world when his friends were elsewhere. "We can go to other worlds on our vessel," he continued, glancing back at Terah's sorrow-filled face, his grin dropping a little. Goofy actually wouldn't mind the girl's company, but Donald was another matter.

"I wonder if I could find Riku and Kairi…" Sora mumbled to himself, but everyone present could understand his words.

Terah glanced worriedly at his face, watching his blue eyes dim with gloom. She cocked her head questionably at him as she wondered where all that confidence from before had gone.

"Of course," Donald immediately intervened, voice oddly cheerful. Terah narrowed her eyes at him, but kept silent. She didn't believe the mage's words to be sincere, no matter how much she wanted to trust her feathery friend.

"Are you sure?" Goofy whispered into the duck's ear, sharing the girl's doubt.

"Who knows?" Donald shrugged as he shook his head. "But we need him to come with us to help us find the king."

Of course. It always came back to that: the ever-important mission. Terah yearned to help her two friends but she also did not approve of the way they were goading her new friend into accomplishing their goal. Desperation for Sora to find his friends also ate away at her. Alongside that despair came a rush of depression when she realized that _she _may not be able to help anyone with their dreams…especially if they left her there in Traverse Town.

"Sora, go with them," Leon urged. Taking a step forward, the older warrior gave an encouraging smirk to the boy, looking vastly out of place on his scarred face. "Especially if you want to find your friends."

"Yeah, I guess," Sora moaned, still sounding unhappy.

Terah bit back an aggravated sigh, feeling the weight on her heart grow at the boy's continued moping. Instinct had her slipping her hand in his, squeezing his fingers for support. She offered a shy smile at him when he looked up at her, surprise in his bright-blue eyes.

"But you can't come along looking like that. Understand?" Donald shook a feathery finger in both their faces. Terah quirked an eyebrow, this sounding oddly familiar. "No frowning. No sad face. Okay?" He winked at the brunette girl who was blushing madly at hearing her very own words being put to use on her newest friend.

"Yeah, ya gotta look funny, like us!" Goofy also gave winked, adding a thumbs-up directed at Terah. He chuckled at her red face as she looked away to stare at her shuffling feet. Donald pushed the dog's face away when Goofy leaned too far over.

"This boat runs on happy faces," Donald quacked, watching Sora expectantly.

"Happy?" Sora repeated, once again, staring down at the ground.

Terah tilted her head when she felt his hand return her squeeze, a smile forming on her lips. Donald and Goofy watched with anticipation, waiting and hoping for the boy to grin wide to show that he was alright.

None of them was disappointed when Sora brought his face up, a huge, cheesy grin on his face, gums showing and everything.

Terah snorted first, causing the domino effect with the other two who burst out laughing. Even Jiminy was chuckling from his position on her shoulder, amused by the boy's display. Terah only really began to laugh when Sora joined in, his laughter being contagious.

"That's one funny face!" Goofy exclaimed between laughs, pointing one gloved finger at Sora. It took a couple minutes for him to calm down enough to catch his breath, the others quickly following.

"Okay, why not?" Sora grinned, locking his hands behind his head in his carefree pose. "I'll go with you guys."

"Donald Duck," Donald offered a feathery hand, a smile on his bill.

"Name's Goofy," Goofy chuckled in his unique way, saluting the Keblade-Wielder.

"I'm Sora," the boy motioned to himself with a thumb, nodding his head as each of the others said their names. He turned to Terah who shuffled her feet and wouldn't look him in the eye.

"What's wrong, Terah?" Sora asked, worried over his new friend.

She winced, knowing this would come up eventually but wishing it hadn't been so soon. "Guess this is where I say 'good-bye'?" she muttered, glancing hopefully one last time at Goofy and Donald. Goofy looked down at the duck by his side who was giving a glare while stomping his foot. The answer was obvious. Terah sighed, but jumped at Sora's next sentence.

"What? But I thought you were coming with me?" Sora exclaimed, waving his hands around in his distress. "We're a team, remember? We're both searching for something," he reminded her of their promise, clearly unhappy with this newest development.

Terah nodded her head at him, telling him that she did remember, but her eyes drifted over to stare at Donald. Catching on, Sora rounded on the duck.

"Why can't she come with us?" he demanded, stomping his own foot once in a show of childish displeasure. He crossed his arms over his chest when Donald opened his mouth to retort.

Donald closed his bill, sighed, and relented, fully-aware that he would not get the Keyblade-Wielder to come along willingly without allowing Terah to join them.

"Fine, she can come along," he muttered to himself, feathers ruffled-both literally and figuratively. His foot was tapping faster than ever. Goofy could swear he saw smoke coming from the ground where it hit.

"Really?" Terah asked, just to make sure. Her smile dampened at the duck's noticeable irritation, but she couldn't help but feel a new hope rise within her at the prospect of adventure. Sora grinned, settling back into his relaxed position now that he had won this battle. Goofy, too, was happy, though worried about how Donald would treat their young friend after this. It wasn't really her fault…

Donald sighed, having caught that desperate gleam in the girl's golden stare. "Really," he declared with a tired smile in the girl's direction.

Instantly, her face lit up.

Donald smiled wider, sticking his hand out in front of him. Goofy, immediately, followed suit, settling his hand atop the duck's. Getting the idea, Sora went next, then Terah brought hers to the pile-smaller and more-delicate than the rest.

"All for one, one for all," Goofy cheered as they all raised their hands into the air together, promising to stick together from now on.

'_Together…' _Terah thought, eyes bright as she thought about it. She'd never have to suffer being alone again…

But when had she ever _been_ alone?

Shaking her head, Terah banished that idle thought from her mind. The others had already started to walk off, heading towards the 1st District. She ran to catch up, stumbling into Sora when she tripped over a raised stone in the street. The boy just managed to catch her before she fell, laughing at her clumsiness. Terah blushed at her own embarrassment, but laughed with him, nonetheless.

_Never alone…_

* * *

><p><strong>.::Somewhere in the Darkness::.<strong>

"That little squirt took down that Heartless! Who'd have thought it?" someone exclaimed in the darkness of the meeting room. Cold, dark eyes stared with interest at the glowing orb at the center of them. Upon the sphere's surface was the boy with the Keyblade, smiling face and all.

"Such is the power of the Keyblade," another's voice put in, a deep accent in this male's tone. "The child's strength is not his own."

"Why don't we turn him into a Heartless?" a high-pitched shrill laughed, sounding feminine. "That'll settle things quick enough."

"And the brat's friends are the king's lackeys," yet another male remarked. His dark eyes narrowed at the ball in front of him as he watched the two known as "Donald" and "Goofy" appear on its shining surface. "Swoggle me eyes, they're all bilge rats by the look of them."

"You're no prize yourself," a fifth chuckled, poking at the other man's pride. He gave a great laugh as he received the desired glare and response.

"Shut up!"

"Enough," a cool, female's voice interrupted the little spat. Instead of blending into the shadows like her peers, this woman was a part of it. Garbed in black, she stood out from the rest with her light-green skin, cold, dead eyes, and lips twisted in a permanent scowl. She moved closer to the sphere, watching as the newly-formed allies brought their hands together, her eyes glinting darkly at the sight of the girl's frail hand settling on top of the pile. "The Keyblade has chosen him. Will it be he who conquers the darkness?" The sneer in her voice as she said this was a clear hint at her not believing that happening in the slightest. "Or will the darkness swallow him? Either way, he could be quite useful…" she trailed off, allowing the others time enough to digest this information.

The moment was interrupted by the first speaker who had an interesting notion.

"And what about that little tart with him?" he voiced his question, anticipation evident in his tone as well as in the glint of his eye. "She could be useful, too."

"Yes," Maleficent mulled this over, thinking back over the fight they had just observed. "The Heartless act differently around her…I wonder…"

* * *

><p><strong>.::Later at Traverse Town::.<strong>

"Make sure you're prepared for the journey ahead of you," Leon advised the five of them. Mostly, he was watching Sora and Terah-the kids. Terah smiled back at him in reassurance, just glad to be getting off with a simple warning for the, ah-hem, _mishap_ from earlier. "We don't know how far the Heartless have spread."

Yuffie decided to step up at this point, elbowing "Squall" in the ribs for being so serious all the time. "Check out the shops here. They've got some pretty neat stuff!" She gave a wink at her friend, Terah. The poor girl blushed a bright-red at the reminder of what had transpired the day before. The ninja had taken her shopping as soon as she had arrived, intent on getting her a complete set of new clothes… They'd gone into some pretty risqué stores in the process-Yuffie's idea; not hers. Her motto: "Never know what you might find in the oddest of places!"…

Aerith shook her head at the short-haired girl, having rescued Terah after an hour of shopping with the female ninja. "This is from all of us," she said as she held out a pouch in front of Sora. "There's 100 munny in there. Spend it as you see fit. And this is from Leon," she pulled out a vial of green liquid from a pocket in her pink dress. Donald took this one with gusto, swiping it out of Sora's reach. Aerith giggled at the two's antics and cast a glance at Terah who was shaking her head with a small smile on her lips.

"An Elixir?" Terah asked, having recognized the vial from the several Yuffie had stuffed into her vest's pockets. Aerith simply nodded her head "yes" in answer before taking a step back to her two friends.

"Good luck!" Yuffie cried out in excitement, sprinting forward to give a surprised Terah one last hug. The ninja ruffled the girl's hair after she pulled away, smirking at the brunette's playful frown as she tried to comb it back into place with her fingers.

"I hope you find your friends," Aerith, too, stepped forward, enveloping Terah in a motherly hug. "And I pray that you find whatever it is you are looking for, too," she whispered into the younger girl's ear. "Here," Aerith shoved something into her hands, smiling at the confused look she received afterwards. "It's a list of those Dalmatian puppies that you need to find," she explained patiently. "Jiminy told us."

"Oh," Terah looked down at the little notepad in her hand, raising it to eye-level to read some of the names.

_Patches, Jewel, Pepper…_

What strange names.

"Thanks, Aerith," the brunette sighed gratefully, glad to have a mission of her own to fulfill. She smiled up at the woman who nodded down at her before turning back to Leon and Yuffie.

"Look out for each other. Keep your spirits up," Leon advised, arms crossed over his chest and looking as serious as ever.

All present nodded, taking the advice with open minds and open hearts. They watched as the three guardians of Traverse Town walked away, probably heading back to the hotel in the 2nd District.

Sora turned to Donald and Goofy, nodding his head to let them know he was ready to head out.

"The gummi ship is outside that gate," the duck mage informed, pointing a feathery finger at the huge set of double doors in the 1st District.

Terah stared up at them, feeling small and helpless. She swallowed the uneasiness making its way up and steeled her will. She was ready to take on everything! Bring on the Heartless! A cheerful smile played about her lips. Sora was already starting to affect her…

Hm…Affect? Infect?

Oh, crap…

The infections…

Her smile trembled as her hand subconsciously moved to the inside pocket of her vest where she had the journal she had found earlier hidden. Thankfully, no one seemed to notice her odd behavior.

"The what?" Sora stared at the duck, drawing Terah's attention back to the situation at hand. She turned to observe the conversation.

"That's our ship," Donald explained, eyes narrowing slightly in irritation. He felt like he was dealing with a five-year-old.

Terah thought about what the duck was talking about, also wondering what the heck a gummi ship was. Obviously, it was how both Donald and Goofy had gotten to Traverse Town from their world (having been informed of this fact by Jiminy the night before), but Terah, herself, had never seen it. She cast a curious glance at Sora, wondering if he'd had similar transportation. Judging by the confused expression on his face, she doubted it. But that did beg the question as to how he had arrived in Traverse Town when he claimed to be from another place, too…

"Wait 'til you see it!" Goofy was getting excited, quite proud of their mode of transportation. He was bouncing on the balls of his feet, eyes glittering with anticipation. Both Sora and Terah smiled, feeling his joy. They, too, were getting eager to see this gummi ship.

"Hold on," Donald cut in, effectively dampening everyone's mood. He dug around for a moment in his jacket, pulling something out before passing it to Sora. "Sora, this is for you." The duck mage dropped a red orb into the boy's open palm. Terah came up behind him, tiptoeing so she could see over his shoulder. Both teens watched, amazed, when the sphere disappeared into his hand with a slight red glow.

"Whoa!" Sora exclaimed, feeling an intense heat wash through him suddenly. As quick as it had come, the sensation disappeared. "What was that?" He glanced at Terah who was clinging to his shoulder. She shook her head and shrugged her shoulders, having no answer for him. She knew about as much as he did.

"Now you can use magic, too," Donald continued with a smile on his bill. He seemed proud to have another magic-user in their party. "Goofy, give him that other thing," he ordered his tall friend, glancing up at the dog-person for a brief second.

"What?" Goofy looked dumbfounded. Clearly, he had no idea what his friend was talking about.

"You know!" Donald was starting to get frustrated. This was going to be a long journey for the poor short-tempered duck.

"Oh, yeah," Goofy chuckled, pulling out a crumpled piece of paper from his pant's pocket. He handed it to Sora who, gently, spread it out so that he could read it.

"Dodge Roll?" Terah read from her position on Sora's shoulder, studying the images of the person on the sheet of paper. There were little hints and improvements scribbled here and there, telling wrong ways and right ways to accomplish the move. She didn't get it-confused-but Sora, apparently, did. He folded it back up and put it in his pocket, thanking the two for their gifts.

"Abilities allow you to do all sort of things. Guess we should look for 'em along the way, huh?" Goofy advised, straightening up.

"Okay, is that it? Let's get going!" Sora urged, eyes shining with anticipation. He was intent on seeing other worlds and finding his friends. Terah, too, was eager to find those puppies and bring them back home, safe and sound.

"Not 'til we're ready!" Donald reproved with a glare.

"Well, I see big adventures coming their way! Looks like it's up to me to keep track of it all in my journal!" Jiminy whispered to himself on Terah's shoulder. Terah heard his words and smiled, but was more focused on proving to Donald that they were, indeed, ready to depart Traverse Town.

"Donald, we _are_ ready," Terah complained, growing impatient. "Yuffie gave me a bunch of potions, elixirs, and everything we're going to need!" She pulled out a handful of potions from her pocket to show him that she wasn't simply wanting to get off this world in a hurry. "See?" Shoving the potions back into the endless pockets (ninja stuff was _cool_!), Terah waited for the duck to see reason.

"Alright. Let's go!" Donald deflated, leading the way to the gummi ship. He quacked angrily when Sora and Terah raced ahead of him through the double doors as they opened. Both teens were keen to observe the infamous gummi ship that would be there home for quite some time.

"Wow…" Sora and Terah murmured quietly to themselves when they reached it. It looked strange on the outside-like a bunch of blocks randomly stuck together-and small, but impressive all the same, especially to two outsiders such as Terah and Sora.

"Well, come on!" Donald ordered as he brushed past them, still seething from the experience moments before. "Let's go!"

Snapping out of their trances, the two brunettes rushed forward, racing up the platform of the ship and into the vessel itself. Goofy followed close behind, chuckling at their childish behavior.

If the outside was spectacular, the inside was out of this world! Out of this universe! It was _huge_! The main "door" led to the cockpit-the part of the ship where all the action happens. The enormous window showed all the trees of the forest where they had landed just outside of Traverse Town. Near that window was a long, curved booth or table, its surface covered in buttons, levers, and the like. Swivel chairs sat along its length-about six in all. Further towards the center sat a few more chairs, though these were more comfortable-looking and resembled something one would find in a living room rather than a ship. Three in all, with controls and steering wheels at the two foremost ones. While Sora eyed the steering wheel enviously, Terah wanted to go explore the rest of the ship…but both teens were stopped short by Goofy.

"We need to take off, you two. Better sit down. Wouldn't want you two getting hurt," he advised with a gentle smile. Sora and Terah deflated but nodded their heads at him. No one could say "no" to Goofy. It was impossible.

"Um, where?" Terah asked, seeing Donald and Goofy, both sit in two of the three comfortable chairs. Those three had seatbelts, but the rest of them up front definitely did not.

"Oh, well, um," Goofy started, but Donald cut him off.

"Just share with Sora," he demanded carelessly, pushing a selection of buttons that revved the engine up.

"Wait, what?" Sora exclaimed, turning red.

"I-that-no," Terah stumbled over own words, blushing, too. Warmth flushed her cheeks when she caught Sora staring at her. Both thought the same thing.

I'm not sitting on his/her lap!

"Just deal with it!" Donald spluttered from up front, clearly growing upset at the delay. His glare was enough to spurn Terah into action.

With a sigh, the girl grabbed Sora's wrist, dragged him to the chair, and forced him to sit in it. Figuring it was better to get it over with quickly rather than linger over the troubling situation, Terah settled herself on the boy's lap.

'_Like taking off a band-aid,' _she thought to herself, intent on keeping her mind busy as her fingers struggled with the buckled. Sora's hands covered hers, fastening the seat belt seeing as how her limbs were shaking from nerves. She looked back to see Sora giving her a shy smile. She shook her head, wondering what she was being so worried about.

"We're ready!" Terah called up front, Sora giving the two a thumbs-up when they looked back the pair of embarrassed teens.

The ship shook vigorously for a moment before shooting directly upwards and into the sky. Terah clung to Sora's shirt, feeling light-headed by the sudden ascent. Thankfully, it didn't last long and Goofy soon gave the okay to get up and move around.

Which they did ASAP.

"That was so COOL!" Terah and Sora punched the air at the same time, speaking the words in stereo. They laughed at each other, giving each other a high-five.

"Wonderland?" they heard Goofy mumble from the window. He was looking down at a small computer screen in the table. Sora and Terah gave one another a look before moving to stand on either side of the knight.

"Is that a world?" Sora asked the dog-person, eyeing the green grid curiously. He shook his head when he realized that he could make no sense of all the crazy formulas and diagrams.

Goofy nodded in answer. "Yep!"

"How long until we get there?" Terah and Sora asked at the same time. They caught each others' eye before breaking down into fits of laughter.

Donald shook his head at them, but Goofy just grinned at the pair of fourteen-year-olds. They were so much alike…

"Four hours," Donald quacked with a dismissive wave of his hand, er, wing. Sora and Terah perked up at that answer, twin expressions of disbelief on their faces. Goofy covered his ears, knowing what was coming while the duck mage remained oblivious.

"WHAT?"


	9. Silence Is Golden but Music Rocks!

_Disclaimer: I do not own _Kingdom Hearts_! I do own Terah and her story though! ^.^_

_Crimson: It's been FOREVER since I last updated! And I am SOOOO SORRY! Life got in the way and my parents are going through a NASTY divorce so...yeah... Anyway, read and review! I know it is a short chapter but I wanted to leave a little tasty tidbit for y'all since it has been far too long...sorry again. T.T_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 8<strong>

**Silence is Golden but Music Rocks!**

Not even a minute into the 4-hour ride to Wonderland and already Terah had vanished from the cockpit. Goofy was worried about where she could have gone. Donald was worried about what she could screw up. And Sora was just itching to go off and explore with her…now, he had the perfect excuse to do so…and still seem perfectly innocent about it…

"I'll go find her, guys!" the brunette islander "graciously" offered, springing from his cushioned seat by the window like his pants were on fire. Before Donald could even so much as quack a rebuttal, the boy was out the door and gone from earshot.

As soon as his feet hit the ground at the base of the cockpit ladder, Sora let out a grateful sigh. Escaping that boredom hadn't come soon enough, despite not even a full minute passing since they first boarded the gummi ship. He never had been very good at sitting still for long. Add that on to being in this cool vehicle that could travel between worlds and he was not allowed to touch anything…now _that_ had been pure torture!

"I wonder where Terah could have gone to?" Sora wondered aloud to himself as he walked down the short hallway with machines larger than him on either side powering the ship. It didn't take him long to find a set of stairs going down to the lower levels of the vessel. Curiosity urged him to venture down the spiraling staircase, and good thing he did because that was where he found what (or, more accurately, who) he was looking for.

But it was the place he found her in that really caught his attention…

"Woah!" he exclaimed as he looked around at the enormous room. A soft sand-colored carpet covered the floor, forcibly reminding him of the beach back home. It stretched across the large expanse of the room, disappearing beneath the several cushy armchairs, sofas, and even beanbags here and there. One whole wall was nothing but glass—a window to the world (or, in the current case, universe) outside. It was a beautiful sight, but what really caught the boy's attention was the huge selection of instruments lined up against one of the solid walls. His jaw dropped. Everything from guitars to tambourines to clarinets were latched securely to the wooden wall. The blue of his eyes glittered with unrestrained anticipation when they settled upon his friend strumming a black guitar, Terah somehow having figured out how to get it unfastened from the complicated mess of metal bolts.

He raised his hand, about to call out her name to gain her attention when her voice stopped him dead in his tracks.

She started to sing—her voice soft and melodious. He listened, entranced by the lyrics as her voice wove through the notes of the guitar strings expertly.

_"When you walk away_

_You don't hear me say_

_Please, oh baby don't go_

_Simple and clean is the way that you're making me feel tonight_

_It's hard to let it go_

_You're giving me_

_Too many things, lately_

_You're all I need_

_You smiled at me, and said_

_Don't get me wrong I love you_

_But does that mean I have to meet your father?_

_When we are older you'll understand what I meant when I said no_

_I don't think life is quite that simple."_

Terah stopped suddenly, her eyes—having had a faraway, glazed look in them as she sang—cleared. She blinked, looking confused. Her knuckles turned white as she clutched the neck of the guitar, trying to remember where she had learned that song, and why she could not recall what lyrics came next. It wasn't until she felt a touch on her shoulder, that she grew aware that someone was in the room with her. Glancing over her shoulder, her golden gaze caught Sora watching her with an expression of awe on his cheerful face.

Embarrassment colored her face a vivid red…

"D-did you…?" she trailed off, unable to finish due to her humiliation at having been heard singing. She didn't like the sound of her own voice—it was soft but lacked power. Not a good combination for a vocalist, she was sure.

"Yeah, I heard you," Sora confirmed her worst fears, grinning at her red face. He rubbed the back of his neck nervously, having heard the words she had sang. Was that song for someone she was looking for? Or…

"I-I heard that song somewhere and just started singing, but I don't remember all the lyrics…" Terah fibbed slightly, explaining it all in a rush so that her friend wouldn't get the wrong idea. "I got bored and the chipmunks helped me get the guitar down so I could play…" she went on. Both Dale and Chip had been surprised that she had asked to play the string instrument. Not that she could blame them. Despite the loss of her memories and apparent amnesia, her fingers seemed to recall the feel and movements of certain things with ease. Chip believed that this may be a sign of good news. This meant that, although her consciousness may have forgotten everything, her _subconscious_ had not and still retained all the information of her life before that day Donald and Goofy had found her wandering Traverse Town. Both of the tiny mechanics encouraged the idea that it may be possible for her memories to return to her. Perhaps through old hobbies and familiar settings. Thus the reason for them _giving_ the guitar to her as a gift, hoping to spark some lost memories.

If that strange song had been any indication, the experiment appeared to be working…

"Chipmunks?" Sora repeated, confused. His brown spikes swayed as he searched the room for these unfamiliar creatures. Living on an island for a majority of his life, the brunette had very little (if any) contact with those particular animals. They never lived around the area his family was in, although he had read about them in books and seen pictures. Curiosity to see one up close and personal ate him up inside. "Where are they now?"

Terah glanced around them, too, but saw nothing aside from the various chairs and beanbags spread all over the place. Shrugging her shoulders as if to say she did not know, she watched as Sora's head dropped in disappointment. "Sorry, Sora," she apologized though she knew it wasn't her fault. Chip and Dale were the engineers for the ship and they must have returned to their duties soon after helping her unlatch the guitar from the wall. She relayed that information to the boy and he brightened up a bit when he learned that there was a good chance he would still get a chance to meet them.

"So what do you want to do for four hours?" Sora asked his new friend, blue eyes bright at the intricate ship they had boarded. His excitement at visiting another world in just a few scant hours was contagious and Terah soon felt her own blood pumping with anticipation.

She shook her head in answer to his question, however, clutching at the neck of the guitar until her knuckles turned white. The thought of exploring the gummi ship was tempting, of course—nearly overpowering—but Terah still couldn't push the thought of that voice she kept hearing ever since she had first woken up out of her head. She was just waiting for it to pull her back into another trance again, leaving her vulnerable to attack or in sight of her friends. Her friends needn't worry about her. This problem of hers was not something she wanted to burden them with. It wasn't as if they could do anything about it anyway… And if it came back while she was alone with Sora, he would definitely notice it right off the bat—nothing to distract him from it—and would demand to know what had happened. He certainly seemed the type to fight until he got to the bottom of things.

"Let's go explore then!" the bright-eyed boy exclaimed, grabbing her by the wrist before she could argue. Terah did not even have the time to drag her feet or brace herself to keep from going off alone with him, nor did she have the chance to set down her guitar. The boy's grip was strong but gentle, forcibly reminding her of the Heartless from earlier as she pulled her from the room and out a door on the wall opposite to the enormous window. It took a moment, but Terah realized that it didn't matter if they were exploring or remaining in one spot, they would have been alone one way or another. And it was only a matter of time before they caught wind that something was up with her frequent spells.

Terah swallowed her nerves as she managed to get her feet under her and walk on her own. Sora's grasp loosened enough to slip down to holding her hand rather than drag her by the arm. An unpleasant heat blossomed in her cheeks at the action, but she simply averted her golden eyes away from their combined hands. Instead, she focused on their surroundings, intent on taking in every detail that she possibly could. She was going to make certain that there would be no way she could _ever_ forget again…


End file.
